


Shadows and Terror

by SteampunkWilson



Category: All Hail King Julien
Genre: Angst, Drinking, Drunk Horst, Hurt/Comfort, I just want these two to interact more, Mentions of brainwashing, Nightmares, Pancho Horst and Willie are drinking buddies, Post-Exiled, Ted is an absolute sweetheart, These lemurs have been through a lot OK, implied PTSD (Pancho), implied/referenced trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:02:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26604154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteampunkWilson/pseuds/SteampunkWilson
Summary: "Oh, I don't want Dorothy to worry." Ted remarked."It's three hours to dawn and you're up in a tree talking to a convicted felon. I bet she's already worried."...The whole fiasco with the mountain lemurs is over and the kingdom is now safe. But Ted still keeps waking up from nightmares and jumping whenever he sees shadows. One night he goes out to avoid talking about it and ends up having a very enlightening conversation with the kingdom's resident expert on trauma: Pancho.
Relationships: Pancho & Willie & Horst, Ted & Pancho, Ted/Dorothy
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	Shadows and Terror

**Author's Note:**

> I know this show's been over for years, but that doesn't mean the fandom has to be over as well! I love both these characters and I'm a sucker for angst, so I hope you enjoy reading this! :)

_The gigantic mountain lemur loomed up in front of him, spear raised._

_One jab after another at his skin with that sharp spear_

_Thick, scary hands wrapped around his arms, ready to lift him up and throw him and-_

_They were in the submarine, and the metal creaked dangerously and water suddenly burst from every wall and flooded them and-_

"Gah!" Ted bolted awake, sitting straight up in bed, clutching his blanket with his eyes wide in terror. He frantically looked this way and that, checking the shadows around the room for any sign of mountain lemurs hiding in the darkness.

"Teddy?" He jumped as he felt a hand on his arm and looked up to see Dorothy standing about him. She quickly released him, seeing how jumpy he was. "Is everything okay?"

Ted let out a long sigh and tried to get his bearings back. "Oh, um, yeah I just, had a bit of a bad dream."

Dorothy sat down on the edge of his bed as Ted wandered why he was still clutching his blanket like a lifeline. The room was still so dark and for some reason it was scaring him, it reminded him of those long nights in the submarine when Julien was whining about his kingdom, Maurice was whining about their general lack of food, plans and competence and Pancho was whining about their whining. Ted had just quietly sat down in the corner of the room, clutching his tail, missing the other lemurs and being terrified by the weight of all the water above him and the general creaks and groans that echoed all throughout the sub, like something was going to tear them apart at any moment...

All he could hear now was his own breathing, short and panting and Dorothy, oh heck, she was talking! Ted blinked a few times and tried to shake himself out of his trance.

"Sorry, what was that dear?" He asked. Dorothy gave a small sigh.

"Do you want me to get you some warm gecko milk, hon?" She asked. "That always used to calm me down when I woke up while sleepwalking."

Ted considered it, but shook his head. "No, I don't think that will help." He sighed. "I just... I guess I'm still jumpy from the whole mountain lemur, submarine fiasco."

Dorothy smiled softly and rubbed the fur on his head, something which he often found soothing. Ted leaned into her touch and tried to force himself to relax. Think about parties, and community theatre projects, and staring into the vast expanse of the sea, wondering if you'll ever be home, wondering if you'll be stuck in this floating hunk of metal forever...

Ted jerked away from Dorothy suddenly, his tail stiffening like it did under imposed threat. He even heard a low growl being forced from his throat as some primal instinct kicked in. Dorothy blinked and stood back. "Teddy? Are you alright?"

Ted realised just how fast he was breathing and tried to take deep breaths. His hands were shaking, why were his hands shaking?! He groaned slightly and rubbed his forehead. "Sorry Dorothy." He sighed. "I don't know what came over me!"

"You don't say." Dorothy muttered. She could tell Ted was still tense from the way he was clutching his tail. "Look, maybe you should see Doctor S? All that time alone at sea clearly did a number on you-"

"No, no I'm fine, really!" Ted insisted, anything to avoid a visit to that creepy snake. He slowly uncoiled himself and climbed out of his bed. "I think I just need some fresh air."

"Are you sure?" Dorothy asked apprehensively, standing back as Ted stood up and brushed down his fur.

"Yep!" Ted tried to sound as merry as he wanted to feel. "I'll just go on a quick walk around the block and I'm sure I'll feel better in no time!"

"At this time of night?" Dorothy looked up through the slats in their hut's roof at the moon, which was high in the sky. "Are you sure that's safe?"

"Very sure!" Ted said, already on his way to the door. "You get some sleep, I'll see you later!"

Before Dorothy could object, Ted had darted out of their hut and into the cool night air.

It was late, much later than he usually liked to be out, and Ted couldn't help but clutch at his tail as he walked. All the other huts were dark and quiet, not so much as a light visible in one of the windows. All he could hear from within were the sounds of snoring lemurs. Snoring lemurs who weren't paralysed in fear by nightmares and memories.

Ted bit his lip as he tuned into the sounds of the jungle all around him. Birds called, geckos dashed past on the ground, he could hear terrifying shrieks and clicks from all sides. Sweet mango juice, what was he thinking, coming out here?! The jungle was dangerous!

But he couldn't just go back to his hut now, Dorothy would still be awake and worried about him, and the conversation he would have to face when he returned was one that he wanted to avoid for as long as possible.

Ted was walking on the ground by now, and came upon a hut with a brightly lit neon sign that read 'MANGO TANGO'. The local tavern was seemingly the only place that was filled with life. As Ted approached, three lemurs walked, or rather, staggered out of it's doors. Ted recognised Horst, Willie and Pancho.

"Guys, we have to go back, we left my beverage!" Horst cried, twisting around in his position balanced between Willie and Pancho, who both looked rather grumpy as they supported the drunk lemur between them.

"The stinking drink's in your hand, you buffoon!" Pancho said grumpily, slumped under Horst's weight. 

"Oh heck I don't think we can carry him all the way back home like this!" Willie exclaimed, already looking exhausted. 

Ted was about to move on from the scene when Pancho scanned the area and caught his eye. "Look, there's Ted! Hey Ted, can you lend us a paw over here?" 

Ted realised that he literally had no other option, and crept cautiously further. 

"What's wrong with him?" He asked. 

"Had a bit too many beverages, if you know what I mean." Pancho winked at him, and let go of Horst, letting Willie crash to the ground under the other lemur's weight with a shriek. "Think you can help us carry him?" 

Ted shrugged. "I guess I could give it a shot." He said. 

He and Pancho turned back to Willie, who was pinned down under Horst's now unconscious form. 

"Uh, little help?" He squeaked. 

Between the three of them they managed to haul Horst back to Willie's hut and deposit him on Willie's spare bed with much effort. The anxious lemur had just wrestled the spare out from underneath his actual bed, which he promptly collapsed onto seconds later. 

"Oh sheesh, he's out cold." Pancho sighed. He turned to Ted. "You wanna come back to the Mango Tango with me? If we leave now we might make it in time for Katherina to finish her segment!" 

Ted didn't want to ask who Katherina was, nor get involved in Pancho's love life, if you could even call it that. He waved the other lemur off. 

"Oh, no thanks. Dorothy wouldn't want me out drinking so late." 

"Oh, right." Pancho leaned back awkwardly. "I forgot what marriage was like, it's been a while." There came an awkward silence between them and Ted began to feel a little uncomfortable. 

He sighed. "Oh, well, I should probably be getting back home, I don't want to keep Dorothy waiting-" 

He turned on his heel and made an effort to leave, but Pancho suddenly darted forwards and caught hold of his wrist with a sharp cry of "No, wait!". Both lemurs flinched under the sudden contact and Pancho released Ted almost immediately. "Sorry, I just, don't want to be alone." Pancho muttered, looking embarrassed. 

Ted was a little surprised by his outburst, but deep down, he knew he might have done the same thing. He really didn't want to go home just yet, but he didn't want to stay by himself in this dark jungle either. 

"Okay." Ted smiled at Pancho. "I won't go to the tavern, but we could go sit up in the trees, if you like?" Pancho frowned slightly, but nodded. 

"Okay." 

The pair were fairly quiet as they exited Willie's hut and shut the door behind them. Together, they climbed up the tall tree that had many different people's huts in it, going up until the branches got thinner and the climbing became actual work. Both of them were quite agile, but Pancho was still tipsy and almost fell off once or twice. Ted swiftly caught his arm and they kept going until they reached the last stable branch that would take their weight. There they sat, overlooking the fabulous view of Madagascar below them. 

"Whoa, I don't think I've ever been up this high before!" Pancho exclaimed, clutching the trunk of the tree next to him. 

Ted sat back and swung out his legs a little. "Oh, I used to come up here all the time back in lemur school. A whole bunch of us liked to have competitions to see who could climb the highest and, not to brag, but old Teddy was a frequent winner!" 

Pancho chuckled as he continued to stare out across the jungle. "I'm not sure if I ever went to lemur school." He said eventually. "A lot of my memory's blanked out since the, you know, the tape thing. Leaves me with a lot of questions." 

"Oh, um, I guess it does." Ted muttered. Despite all the time they had spent together while Koto had taken over the kingdom, he really didn't know much about Pancho's side of things. Just that he had gone crazy when he heard that strange tape and basically owned the submarine they had escaped on, and that was about it. 

Ted sighed and glanced up at Pancho, feeling a certain question tug on him from the inside. "You get scared sometimes?" He couldn't help asking. 

Pancho frowned curiously as he glanced back at Ted. "What do you mean?" He asked. 

Ted giggled nervously. "Oh you know, the usual, like when the Fossa attack us, or when Clover gets all up in our faces with an investigation. Stuff like that." Pancho grunted and Ted found himself clutching his tail again. "And, you know, other stuff too. Like when you wake up from a nightmare that felt real because it was real, it was something that happened, but even when that something's over and you know it's never going to hurt you again you just can't help being terrified and, oh gosh I'm rambling aren't I? Sorry." 

Pancho shook his head and repositioned himself so he was facing Ted. "Don't apologise." He said. Ted glanced back at him. "It's, uh, it's alright to get scared by that stuff. I get scared like that too, sometimes." 

"Really?" Ted shuffled a little closer. "You? But you're, you know, uh-" 

"Constantly in and out of prison and dangerous situations, mainly because I put myself in them to start with?" Pancho chuckled. "I might be a bit more reckless than you Ted, but it doesn't mean I don't get nightmares either."

"Oh, heh heh." Ted laughed awkwardly, still fiddling with his tail, something he hadn't really done since he was small but had started doing with alarming frequency. "What about? The invasion?" 

Pancho leaned back and gazed off into the distance. "You know I got brainwashed, right?" He said coldly, not meeting Ted's eye. "I spent years being trained by King Julien's uncle, without my consent, to be an assassin, ready to kill any target he chose, regardless if I wanted to or not. He took my memories, all of them, of my past, my family and I spent years not knowing who I was other than having vivid nightmares of a house with a red door and flashbacks to the king laughing menacingly. The invasion didn't even come close to any of that in comparison." 

Ted had remained completely frozen in surprise throughout Pancho's monologue, and slowly unwound himself as the other lemur rested his chin on his hand. "Not to say there weren't moments, especially with those dang sharks, but everything else just feels a lot bigger." 

"Oh, gee." Ted muttered. "I guess me being all messed up because of the mountain lemurs and the submarine doesn't really cut it when you've been through all that." 

"Don't say that." Pancho said sharply. "You can be messed up over whatever you want, or rather, don't want. The invasion was still pretty scary, especially for a guy like you." 

"Oh." Ted muttered. "Well in that case, wait, what do you mean a guy like me?" 

Pancho looked him up and down. "You're, you know, soft. Not really the tough guy type, if you know what I mean." 

"Soft!" Ted exclaimed, hands on his hips. "I'll have you know me and Dorothy once ran an underground imitation diaper factory! And I'm assistant captain of the ringtail guard!" 

"I know, I helped distribute them." Pancho reminded him, though he chuckled a little at Ted's declaration. "Alright, maybe you're not soft. But you're still allowed to have these feelings, even long after the invasion. The scary stuff might have gone away, but being scared of it can last."

"Tell me about it." Ted sighed. "Every time I see Mort's new wife, I flinch and find myself back on the battlefield, about to be torn apart by a humungous mountain lemur, I just can't help it! I hate being so impolite, but I just can't bring myself to pay them a wedding visit!" 

"I think it's pretty natural to be scared of Mort." Pancho remarked. "Even I get the heebie-jeebies around that guy sometimes!" 

Both lemurs chuckled and leaned back against the branch they were sitting on. Eventually, Ted began to stare awkwardly across the treetops again. "I know I'm allowed to still be nervous, I guess." He sighed. "I just don't like being so skittish all the time! I wish the nightmares would stop!" 

Pancho put a hand on his shoulder. "This stuff takes time to go away." He said kindly. "Sometimes it never does. Why don't you talk to your wife, she'll help." 

"Oh, I don't want Dorothy to worry." Ted remarked. 

"It's three hours to dawn and you're up in a tree talking to a convicted felon. I bet she's already worried." 

Ted smiled and nodded. "Okay. I guess I'll try and tell her about some of the things we did. And my nightmares. Thank you Pancho." 

Pancho smiled back at him. "Hey, anytime. Thanks for keeping me company. Nights get lonely for a guy like me." 

Ted patted him on the shoulder sympathetically. "If you ever want someone to talk about your nightmares with, well, you know where I live." He said kindly. Pancho smiled briefly, his sunset eyes lighting up with happiness. 

"Thanks Ted. I'll keep that in mind." The pair of them sat above the jungle, just watching it all the other life pass by. The lemurs below them slept, the nocturnal birds and critters went about their nightly business and both of them felt strangely content. 

Ted knew he probably wouldn't get over his nightmares, at least, not for a long while. Probably even longer for Pancho. But right now all thoughts of mountain lemurs lurking in the shadows and the threat of a submarine about to collapse around him, were gone from his head. He was just happy to take in the island with his friend. He was happy to heal.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are everything!
> 
> @I-loves-my-lemurs is my AHKJ specific tumblr if you're interested in that! Hope you enjoyed the story :)


End file.
